Thursday, 20 February 2014

PRAYER MOMENT WITH Fr. David Harold-Barry SJ

Reading. “Anyone who wants to save his life will lose it; but anyone
who loses his life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will
save it.” (Mark 8:34 – 9:1)

Reflection. This paradox is at the
heart of the gospel – and of all human life, perhaps of all life. I once
saw gannets (sea birds) on the rocky islands off the west coast of
Ireland and learnt that they are fed and fed by the mother and then
abandoned. They have a choice: to cast themselves off the cliff and
learn to fly and fish for themselves or to stay comfortably on the rocks
and gradually starve to death. “Fly or die” is also our choice and in
gospel terms it means a radical rejection of all that goes against our
openness to God and instead finding Him in all the events of the day.
And this means a rigorous attention to the working of the Spirit of God
within and leads to an immense joy in discovering where that leads.

Prayer. Lord, teach us to “lose our life” in all the events of the day.
Teach us that central message of the gospel and lead us to the joy of
finding you in all things. Amen.